wardrobe to computer workstation

john was in need of a nice computer wardrobe, and was very frustrated that all the solutions were either too small and shoddy or way too expensive. after some inspiration from this site, he hacks the leksvik 3 door wardrobe into a computer workstation.

he says, “i permanently mounted the main bay shelf at approx 30 inch height and placed horizontal supports under it to give it good support to hold the monitor and be the main work area. i then mounted an adjustable keyboard tray to finish off the main bay.

the smaller bay had 4 shelves in it. i wanted this bay for peripherals, and wanted pull out shelves for easy access. this was accomplished by installing 3 of the shelves permanently with drawer slides i purchased at a local home improvement big box. i ripped the 3 shelves down 2 inches in width, saving 1″ of the width rip for an offset that i mounted to the rightmost side of the wardrobe, and then mounted the drawer slides to that offset which allowed the sliding shelves to clear the doors when they are open.

i used a hole saw to cut 1.5″d holes behind each peripheral shelf, and two in the main bay, one above the work surface and one below it. i cabled in power and USB to each peripheral shelf and was ready to go.

all told the cost was about $70 in random hardware including the keyboard tray for the mod. assembly was a snap. the main unit took about an hour to set up, and the mods took about another 2-3.

i ran into some difficulty with the slide offsets splitting from the wood screws. the reclaimed pine is very sensitive, and i found that countersinking for the screw head is mandatory and solves the splitting problem. tools i used were my trusty dewalt cordless screwdriver, table saw for ripping the shelves down, and a miter saw for cross cutting the the main work shelf supports.

this could all be done with just a manual screwdriver and a hand or hand power saw, but be sure to take appropriate measures to minimize chipout of the shelves if you do.”

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Jules Yap "I am Jules, the engine behind IKEAHackers and the one who keeps this site up and running. My mission is to capture all the wonderful, inspiring, clever hacks and ideas for our much loved IKEA items".

10 Responses to wardrobe to computer workstation

12 tips for Best Computer Workstation 1. use a good chair with a dynamic chair back and sit back in this 2. top of monitor casing 2-3″ (5-8 cm) above eye level 3. no glare on screen, use an optical glass anti-glare filter where needed 4. sit at arms length from monitor 5. feet on floor or stable footrest 6. use a document holder, preferably in-line with the computer screen 7. wrists flat and straight in relation to forearms to use keyboard/mouse/input device 8. arms and elbows relaxed close to body 9. center monitor and keyboard in front of you 10. use a negative tilt keyboard tray with an upper mouse platform or downward tiltable platform adjacent to keyboard 11. use a stable work surface and stable (no bounce) keyboard tray 12. take frequent short breaks (microbreaks)

The comment about the doors is true — having lived with this now for a year or so it can be frustrating. The truth is though that we only rarely use the peripherals.

That having been said, it would not be terribly difficult to modify the middle door to slide that completely recesses the door. Instead of mounting the main desk to the right side of the large compartment you put in an internal vertical support for it to connect to. Then depending on the slide design you might have to trim the main door a bit. Now that I think about it it would be fun to do. If I get around to it I will repost.

This is wonderful idea. It’s amazing that I have been thinking about doing something similar in my room but never got around. After reading this post I know that it’s possible and hope to get around doing it. Keep it up. This is a wonderful site!

But, wouldn’t it be hard to get to the peripherals when you have one door in the way? Now if you could find the way to maybe side the door in to get it out of the way, or fold both door to the left side, that would be very neat.

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